Eight of nine persons aboard a small twin-engine plane were rescued Friday evening (August 25, 2000) after it crashed in waters off the Honolii area of South Hilo.

The ninth person, a passenger aboard the 10-seat Piper Chieftain, was unaccounted for. A police, fire and Coast Guard search for the missing passenger and the plane was called off because of darkness and was scheduled to resume Saturday.

Police said eight persons, including the pilot, were taken to the Hilo Medical Center for treatment. By 8 p.m., some of the occupants were still being treated; others had been released. It was not immediately known if anyone was seriously injured.

The crash occurred shortly before 5:39 p.m., when police dispatch received a call that a small plane had crashed into the ocean. The plane went down about 200 yards offshore of Kahoa Road in the Honolii surfing area.

The plane is owned by Big Island Air, located in Kona. According to Thomas Beard, the owner, the plane was on a flight from Kona to Hilo when it went down.

No other details about the crash or the condition of the survivors were immediately available. Police also were withholding the names of the survivors and missing person until their families could be notified.

The Federal Aviation Agency and National Transportation Safety Board were notified of the crash. Inspectors from the two federal agencies were expected to arrive in Hilo on Saturday.